Harry Potter and a Different Path
by captuniv
Summary: Harry meets someone while hiding from Dudley and enters the Wizarding World a little early and with the help of the Goblins takes a slightly different path.
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter and a Different Path

By Mark Safransky

It was another boring day in Little Whinging and Harry Potter was running from his cousin and his gang. Whipping around a trash bin in an alley and making onto the street, he immediately ducked into a shop and panted for breath.

"Well there young fellow, what brings you to my shop today?" asked the older man standing behind the counter.

Harry glanced up sharply and quickly said, "I'm trying to keep from getting beat up. Don't make me go back out there mister."

The old man came out from behind the counter and handed the small boy a handkerchief to wipe his brow as he replied, "don't fret there young man, I won't make you leave. So, what's your name?"

"It's Harry, Harry Potter sir."

"Oh ho, young Harry Potter is it," the man said as his eyes twinkled. "I see, running from your cousin again, heh?"

Harry groaned as he replied softly, "yes sir."

"Well, don't worry none son. I've heard the beastly stories your relatives have spread throughout town about you and I don't believe a word of them."

"Really?" came the plaintive question from the boy.

"Oh my yes, anyone with a lick of common sense and eyes to see can see that the hooligan in these parts is your cousin Dudley and his gang. I will never understand what makes these folks tick that they can't see what's right in front of their own eyes."

The boy's eyes seem to shine a little brighter with unshed tears as he looked up at the old man and seemed to gain a little confidence as he said, "Thanks."

"Hmm, I'm not really sure what your parents were thinking to leave you with such dreadful people once they passed on. Say, do you know why they did?"

"No sir, the Dursley's only said that I was left on their doorstep, after the car crash that is."

The old man suddenly leaned back in astonishment, "Car crash? What car crash is that?"

"The one that killed my parents," Harry replied in confusion.

"My word," the old man said. "Your parents didn't die in a car crash. I wonder what is going on here, your relatives have lied to you, and you're left on their doorstep without any explanation. This is very peculiar. I wonder if…" his voice trailed off as he appeared to be in deep thought.

"Wonder what sir?" Harry questioned.

"Ah, I'm wondering if I should explain the details I know to you young man," the old man replied. "Yes, that would probably be best, wouldn't it?"

Shaking his head at the ignorance the boy in front of him had been left in, the old man walked over and flipped his shop sign to closed and took the boy into one of the back rooms to sit down.

"Now Harry, my name is Octavius Quinn and I own and operate this small curio shop. I know some of the events surrounding the death of your parents but only some of them. Back in the late 70's and early 80's there was a man who called himself Lord Voldemort who was trying to subvert the lawful government and setup a bigoted one that only allowed those who supposedly were Pureblooded to rule."

"Pureblood what's?" Harry asked.

"Wizard's, of course," Mr. Quinn replied.

"Wizard's?" Harry squeaked.

"Yes Harry, Wizard's exist. Your father was from a long established pureblood line. Your mother, on the other hand, was what is called a muggleborn witch. Muggles being what non-magical people are called."

Oh," Harry said softly. "Then how do you know about them? Aren't you a Muggle?"

"No, no Harry," Mr. Quinn laughingly replied. "I'm what is referred to as a Squib, a non-magical person born to in a Wizarding family."

"That's just stupid, I mean if they call non-magical people Muggles, then why call you a Squib?" Harry wondered aloud.

"Ha," Mr. Quinn laughed. "I never said logic is a wizard's best friend. But anyway, Voldemort and his followers tried gaining power at first through the government but were not too successful. Then they began a campaign of terror, using torture and killing of first Muggles and Muggleborns and then on to Purebloods who opposed their methods and message. It was a very frightening time to live in the Wizarding world with all this going on. Then, on Halloween of 1981, Voldemort apparently tried to attack your home in Godric's Hallow in Wales and after killing your parents, tried to kill you as well."

"What happened?" Harry asked softly.

"That's the thing, no one really knows. Someone found you in the wreckage of your home with only that scar on your forehead as proof of whatever happened. Your parents were found dead in the rubble and the cloak of the Dark Lord by your bassinet. No body, but I think people were to happy by him being gone to worry too much about that." Mr. Quinn sighed softly as he leaned back and looked sorrowfully at the boy. "With all the celebrations going on and everything, I guess you were placed with your Aunt and Uncle within a day or two without anyone really knowing except they gave you a nickname after it happened."

"What did they call me," Harry asked in astonishment.

"They call you the Boy-Who-Lived." Mr. Quinn replied.

"That's dumb," Harry said. "How do they know my parents didn't do something that killed Volde..Vold..."

"Voldemort," Mr. Quinn completed for him. "Well, we really don't know. I really do wonder at your placing here. I mean, I know that your Godfather was imprisoned in Azkaban for betraying your parents but I can't see that they didn't have anyone else lined up."

"What? My Godfather did that? And what's Azkaban?"

"Well, they say he led Voldemort to your parents as they were under the Fidelius Charm at the time." Seeing the question in Harry's eyes, Mr. Quinn said, "the Fidelius Charm supposedly hides some information within a Secret Keeper and only that person can divulge it to someone."

"Oh," Harry exclaimed. "Well, did he or didn't he? What did he say at his trial, did he give any reasons?"

"Hmm," Mr. Quinn thought for a moment, "I don't recall ever reading anything about a trial. Might have missed it but I really don't remember anything about it."

"No trial?" Harry cried out. "What kind of government does this wizarding world have anyway?"

"You know, we might have to look that information up to see if any trial was given. If not, then he's been held in Azkaban illegally. Oh, I forgot, Azkaban is the Wizarding world's prison. It is on Azkaban Island and guarded by dark creatures known as Dementors."

"Well, that's not good," Harry thought about it quickly, "if my Godfather is actually innocent, he could take me away from the Dursley's, right?"

"Yes, there's a good chance of that Harry," Mr. Quinn agreed. "We might want to talk to the Goblins at Gringotts Bank and find out what they know."

"Goblins? Real Goblins, like in the stories?" Harry asked in astonishment.

"Yup, real Goblins like in the stories. They pretty much run the wizarding worlds bank now. Say, what about tomorrow you come back here and I take you to see them?" Mr. Quinn offered.

"Yes sir, that sounds like a good idea. I'll try to get here early enough after my chores." Harry said.

"Chores?" Mr. Quinn asked quietly.

"Well, whatever the Dursley's decide to make me do to earn my keep." Harry replied.

"Alright Harry, try to get here early though so we have enough time to take care of whatever we learn."

"Okay sir, thanks a lot for letting me rest here."

"Not a problem young man," Mr. Quinn said as they both stood up, "I'll see you early tomorrow then."

Harry made to leave and then stopped for a moment and waved back saying, "Bye."

Watching Harry leave his shop, Mr. Quinn sighed again and for a moment really pitied the young man you just left. Shaking his head he went into another back room and pulled out a small stack on papers to look through as he reopened his shop.

-o0o-

The next day Harry was able to skip out of the Dursley's home early before his Aunt Petunia was able to give him a list of chores for the day. He immediately wandered down to Quinn's Curios and waited for the door to be unlocked. The talk the day before with Mr. Quinn had really opened his eyes to some of the Dursley's behavior and some of the motivations behind them.

When the door was opened and Mr. Quinn beckoned him in with a smile, Harry felt much better and smiled in return as he walked in.

"Alright lad, we need to use the Floo Network to get to Gringotts. This means we firewalk. I through the special powder into the fire, we watch it turn green and then we state our destination before entering. Understand?"

Harry nodded quickly in reply and watched Mr. Quinn through the powder in to the flame. "Gringotts," the old man said as he stepped into the flame and disappeared. Harry followed right behind and repeated what Mr. Quinn had said. He suddenly found himself spinning through a wreath of flames past other fire grates until he came to a stop beside the older man in what appeared to be a bank lobby.

Mr. Quinn walked over to one of the Teller windows, beckoning Harry to keep up, and spoke to the Teller there. "Good morning Grasptail, I've brought along a young man who needs to see one of the senior account managers today."

"Certainly, Mr. Quinn," the Goblin replied as he looked at Harry before gasping slightly and motioned for a runner to approach.

"Griphook, take Mr. Quinn and Mr. Potter to see Grabfoot immediately."

Griphook motioned for the humans to follow him as he led them into a warren of offices at the back. He marched them to a large office which had the name Grabfoot on the door which listed him as Senior Account Manager. Knocking on the door, he listened for a voice to say "Enter" before opening the door and escorting the humans inside.

"Sir, Grasptail asked me bring these humans before you," Griphook stated.

"Thank you Griphook. Enter gentleman," the Goblin seated behind the desk replied.

"Thank you sir," Harry said softly.

The Goblin looked intently at Harry for a moment before glancing over at Mr. Quinn and said, "What is you business here today sir."

Mr. Quinn placed his hand on Harry's shoulder to keep him in place for a moment before replying, "I met Mr. Potter yesterday and learned he knew nothing about the wizarding world nor his place in it. When I questioned him, he didn't even know how his parents died. After seeing how he's been treated by his so-called relatives. I'm wondering why his parents would have had him placed there after their deaths. We wanted to check their wills to see if there was an alternate listed."

"Hmm," the Goblin sighed as he pushed on a button on the desk. "Let us see what was listed in the wills."

The door opened to show Griphook again. "Griphook, please check the archives and bring me the Potter wills."

"At once sir," the young Goblin replied before leaving again.

"Sit down please," Grabfoot asked as he shuffled some parchment to the side. "Would you like some tea while we wait?"

"Thank you, most kind," Mr. Quinn replied as Harry nodded.

-o0o-


	2. Chapter 2

Griphook brought a large folder of parchments back into the room and laid in it in front of Grabfoot before stepping back. Grabfoot immediately reached for it and stopped suddenly as he glanced at the seal. Looking over at Griphook in query, he asked, "Why is this folder sealed with a Wizengamot seal?"

"Unknown sir," Griphook replied. "We didn't seal it either must have been at the bequest of the executor or the Potter's solicitors."

"Hmm," Grabfoot remarked under his breath as he studied the seal. "Mr. Potter, I'm afraid I can't release this information to you."

Harry seemed despondent for a moment before thinking hard. "Sir, if you can't release the seal, who can?"

This question caused both Goblins to smile as Grabfoot said, "Good question young man. The Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, Albus Dumbledore can or we can ask the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to do so if we feel that the information may be critical to a criminal case."

Mr. Quinn then put forward, "I believe that Mr. Potter was probably placed with his relatives by Dumbledore so he would not release the seal. However, if we put forth to Madame Bones, who just took over the DMLE a few months ago, that the placement was endangering Mr. Potter's life, she might release it to see if we can place him in a more proper home."

Both Goblins glanced at each other before turning back to the humans and Grabfoot stated quietly, "Can you prove that Mr. Potter is endangered there Mr. Quinn?"

Octavius Quinn was smart enough to realize that his statement alone wasn't enough and turned to Harry to explain. "Harry, while I can relate the stories told about you in Little Whining and the instances of bullying I've seen, you would have to relate all the things your relatives have done over the years to you as well as them keeping you ignorant of your heritage."

Harry pondered this for a moment before realizing that Mr. Quinn was probably right but didn't see how this would work when every time he or a teacher brought up his bruises and clothing, the accusation would be that he lied. "I can tell them, but it will probably end like all the other times."

Mr. Quinn sat up straight at that comment and asked, "What do you mean like every other time?"

"Well," Harry blushed in shame. "I've had a couple of teachers who reported what they thought was abuse by the Dursley's and within a couple of days they were fired and the school's Headmaster would let me to stop telling lies about how I was treated. Then the Dursley's would lock me in my cupboard for a week for trying to get them in trouble. Honestly, I never said a thing; Miss Pime and Mr. Lawson were the ones who alerted the Child Protective people. Not that they ever interviewed the Dursley's in the first place."

Mr. Quinn thought about that statement a moment before he blanched and cried out, "My God, it sounds like someone Obliviated them to cover where you were!"

Grabfoot hissed softly before turning to Griphook and ordering, "Get Madame Bones here now. There is more going on than merely a custody situation."

Griphook raced out the door as Grabfoot turned back to the humans and stated, "Mr. Potter and Mr. Quinn, it sounds like someone may have placed the baby illegally and used Wizengamot resources to cover their tracks as well as having someone also modify memories to keep Mr. Potter in that home. We might have to send out a cursebreaker or two to uncover some of what has happened."

-oOo-

Inside the Ministry of Magic, Madame Bones had returned to her office in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement after another budget meeting with the Minister that had been a complete waste of time. The idiot still would not approve an increase in the Auror force to cover the retirement of older members. Sighing, she poured a cup of tea and reached for the first of a stack of parchmentwork that seemed to accumulate daily as the Floo fired up and a Goblin head appeared.

"Good day Madame Bones. My name is Griphook and I have been ordered by Senior Account Manager Grabfoot to make a request for you to appear at Gringotts. We may have uncovered an illegal activity regarding one of our clients and need your approval in person to continue our investigation."

Amelia Bones was anything but stupid and thus realized that her personal appearance meant that a high level official of either the MoM or the Wizengamot was implicated in whatever they had uncovered. One of the things that really pushed her buttons was corruption at high levels, especially after this latest debacle with the Minister. If he was involved, she would enjoy roasting him over the coals.

"It just so happens that I happen to be free for the afternoon, Griphook. I'll make arrangements with my secretary to cover the office and I'll Floo right over. Is that satisfactory?"

Smiling grimly Griphook replied, "Indeed Madame Bones. Thank you for your prompt attention in this manner. I'll be waiting by the Floo entrance for you."

The fire went back to normal as she drafted a quick note stating her presence had been requested at Gringotts and to notify her Deputy of any emergencies in her absence. Sending it out, she immediately flooed to Gringotts.

-oOo-

Griphook soon lead Madame Bones back into Grabfoot's office and watched her eyes widen as she saw who was sitting there.

As for Harry, he saw Griphook lead in a middle-aged blonde whose hair had just started to silver and wearing a monocle. Her eyes widened as she spotted him and the scar on his forehead. He fidgeted a bit when he saw that as Mr. Quinn had related what the scar represented.

"Ah, Madame Bones, honored," Grabfoot said as he rose and shook her hand.

"Good day Grabfoot. I also am honored to receive your request. How may I help you in this matter," she said as she seated herself next to Mr. Quinn.

"We learned this morning of the placement of one of our special clients in a home that seems to be counter to his health and welfare. From what both Mr. Quinn, who lives in the neighborhood, and Mr. Potter himself have stated; there might have been an illegal placement of Mr. Potter with his relatives as well as some very illegal memory modifications done on muggles who have attempted to better his situation."

"What?" Bones exclaimed. "Mr. Potter, would you be so kind as to tell me of your life with these relatives since your placement there?"

Harry looked down, embarrassed and ashamed, as he replied, "Yes ma'am."

Amelia Bones immediately noticed the way he acted and stated, "Mr. Potter, it's not your fault, whatever happened. Let me set up a Dictation Quill and parchment to take your testimony. Just tell me in your own words what your life has been like."

Taking a deep breath as he watched her set up a pile of parchment and a special Quill that stood on end, he slowly with many breaks to regain his composure, told his life story as he recalled to her, Mr. Quinn and the Goblins.

About an hour and a half later, all of them were red with rage at the way the Wizarding world's savior had been raised. Mr. Quinn then told of things from his perspective as a witness of what he had seen and heard in Little Whining as he ran his shop. When he was finished, Madame Bones was ready to chew nails she was so mad.

"Thank you both for those statements. Mr. Potter, as of right now, I am removing you from the Dursley's home as an eminent threat to your well being. I'll have to get us both to see Patrice Welling in Wizarding Child Protection to find you a place to stay. Now, Griphook mentioned you also needed me to find out if Mr. Potter was placed illegally. How so?"

Grabfoot passed the folder over to her to allow her to see the Wizengamot seal. "The wills of Mr. Potter's parents were apparently sealed by someone with Wizengamot authority. We would like you to break the seal and see if the Potters wanted their son placed with those people."

"I see," Madame Bones said as she studied the seal. "This appears to be authentic, thus under my authority as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement I hereby declare this seal revoked and the contents revealed forthwith."

The seal on the parchment glowed softly for a moment before dissipating, and the parchment unrolled in front of her. She then handed it back to Grabfoot so that a Gringotts official could state with certainty that it was an authorized will.

"Hmm," Grabfoot hummed under his breath as he looked the document over. "These are the Last Wills and Testaments of James Harold Potter and Lily Jasmine Evans Potter. It states certain funds to be dispersed, two charitable organizations to be founded and stated that young Mr. Potter was to be placed with the following people:

Sirius Black

Alice Longbottom

Amelia Bones

Minerva McGonagall

Filius Flitwick

These prove that the will was circumvented. The executor is listed as Albus Dumbledore."

"What?" Harry cried out. "I could have had a real home but that old man stuck me with my Aunt and Uncle who treated me like a slave? Why?!?" Harry then broke down in tears as Mr. Quinn comforted him the best he could.

"Why indeed," Madame Bones said in a frigid tone as she realized that she was a possible candidate for Harry's care. Obviously, James Potter liked her a great deal when they worked together on the Auror force. "I will need a copy of these documents to take back to the MoM with me. Also, Gringotts may continue their investigation with additional authority to look into the affairs of Albus Dumbledore. Would you make something in writing for me Grabfoot, for me to authorize that?"

"Yes Madam Bones, we can have that made up very quickly. Do you want us to send some specialists to Little Whining to do a ward check of the Dursley residence to see if Mr. Potter was under any kind of protections there?"

"Yes," she replied after a moments thought, "Dumbledore supposedly placed Mr. Potter there to protect him. Let's find out what kind of protection allows him to be abused by his muggle relatives. Harry, I'm going to need you to accompany me back to the Ministry to take care of your placement parchmentwork. Mr. Quinn, you are invited along as you obviously have Harry's best interests at heart."

"Thank you for that Madame Bones. Oh, I almost forgot in the excitement. Mr. Potter and I were talking yesterday when we figured his placement might be illegal and wondered if Mr. Black actually had a trial. I couldn't find anything in the papers of the time and don't recall myself. All we know is he is in Azkaban for betraying the Potters. Harry wondered why he would, and was a bit upset to find no evidence of questioning or a trial to help answer that."

"I have no idea," Amelia Bones said thoughtfully. "While I assume that Barty Crouch at least questioned him, I don't know for sure. I'll have some of my people look into that once we get back. If he didn't, there are going to be heads rolling over this."

Harry wiped his eyes and took Mr. Quinn's hand as they left the office after Madame Bones signed a parchment authorizing Gringotts to investigate Mr. Potter's placement and anything related to him financially, just in case.

After a few moments, the threesome then flooed to the Ministry to find Harry a new home.


	3. Chapter 3

After arriving at her office in the DMLE, Amelia Bones seated her guests and began a new file on the Potter situation. Harry glanced around the office with wide eyes taking in everything with awe as Mr. Quinn patted his shoulder in sympathy. A couple of quick messenger notes departed on their way to their recipients as she turned back to Harry and Mr. Quinn.

"Well Harry," she began, "we'll have Patrice Welling bring your file from Wizarding Child Protection Services and find out what's in there. After that, I think we'll need to have a Healer from St. Mungo's come by and give you a quick check-up. Just to document your physical condition and see if there needs to be something done right away. Okay?"

"Okay, Ma'am," Harry replied softly.

At that moment, the secretary peeked in and told Madame Bones that Patrice Welling was waiting to see her.

"Send her in," Madame Bones ordered.

Patrice Welling was another middle-aged Witch much like Amelia Bones but with brownish hair pulled back in a ponytail. She bustled into the office with a small file under her arm but stopped short at the sight of Harry Potter sitting in there.

"Oh my," she exclaimed.

"Yes Patrice," Amelia explained, "this is Harry Potter. I removed him from his home earlier after he related his upbringing to me. The Goblins are going to do a ward analysis of the home as well as scan it for any spells. I need to see what his folder relates and why WCPS didn't make any visits to check-up on him before."

"Oh, well I checked the folder before bringing it up to make sure there weren't any problems. I found a big one; Mr. Potter isn't listed as residing with Muggles. He is listed as residing with his wizarding guardian, Mr. Black."

"What?" three voices exclaimed.

"Exactly my reaction," she explained. "There is nothing here indicating that Mr. Potter was relocated to the Muggles nor is there any kind of transcript of Mr. Black's trial which would be needed to place him there. Strangely, the reason no one knew is because his file had been misfiled. It was in the wizarding-raised files."

In that case Patrice, do you mind replacing it where it was and starting a new file for Mr. Potter?"

"Hmm, yes, we can do that. State that the old file is lost and when you came to me with this information, I had to start a new file," Ms. Welling mused to herself. "I'll go ahead and start a new file as soon as I get back to my office. Who shall I list as the new guardians?"

Madame Bones looked over at Harry and asked, "Who would you like to go to Mr. Potter?"

"Why would you ask me?" Harry said.

"You haven't had any say before and you should feel comfortable with who you are placed," she explained. "Of course, if you want, we can just use your parent's suggestions in their will?"

"Um, that sounds best for now," Harry said. "I don't know anyone in the wizarding world besides Mr. Quinn, you and the Goblins."

"In that case, in order of precedence, Mr. Black is currently in Azkaban. Although it may be an illegal placement as we don't have any trial or questioning transcripts, he is currently unavailable. Mrs. Longbottom is in the St. Mungo's Long Term Care Ward and is also currently unavailable. The third person is myself. Would you like to come home with me for the next thirty days, Harry?"

Harry looked deep in thought for a moment before he looked up through his lashes shyly and said, "Sure."

Amelia smiled at him and said, "Good, I have a niece at home about your age so there will be someone to play with as well."

Harry suddenly smiled, "Really? I hope she likes me."

"I'm sure she will," Amelia said. "The thirty day period is to make sure you're properly being cared for as well as how well you fit into my home."

Ms. Welling smiled as she made a notation and said, "That's good enough for me right now Amelia. As soon as you have more for me, make sure a copy comes to my office addressed to me personally so I can add it to the file."

"Right," Amelia said, "thank you for all your help Patrice."

Ms. Welling left with her notes and copies of the Potter's wills. Amelia pitched the top of her nose before turning back to Mr. Quinn. "Will you be available for anything that may come up Mr. Quinn?"

"Oh yes," he replied. "Anything I can do to help your investigation along, just ask."

"Then thank you Mr. Quinn, I'll have a healer here shortly and then take Harry home to meet Susan."

"Susan?" Harry asked.

"My niece," Amelia said with a smile. "She's a nice girl and I'm sure will take to you quickly. Oh, we should stop along the way to get you a few clothes as well."

Harry blushed in shame and spoke to his shoes, "They're all I have."

Amelia patted him in sympathy and stated, "Not anymore. If those relatives of your couldn't see fit to properly outfit you, we will."

"Thanks," Harry mumbled.

Turning back to business, Amelia Bones smiled at Mr. Quinn and quickly shook his hand stating, "Thank you for bringing all this to light sir and have a good day."

"Thank you Madame and it was a pleasure."

With that Mr. Quinn ran his hand over Harry's head in farewell and left the office.


	4. Chapter 4

After Mr. Quinn had departed back to Little Whinging and his shop, Madame Bones gave Harry a cup of tea and said, "Now Harry, we're going to have a Healer look you over and then I'll take you home."

"Okay," Harry agreed.

The Healer showed up twenty minutes later and after being briefed by Madame Bones began to scan Harry with her wand. "Alright Harry, I'm just going to cast a few diagnostic spells here so sit still until I tell you that you can move."

"Sure Healer Wright," Harry said as he sat in the hard chair and tried not to fidget.

The Healer slowly moved her wand over Harry's body while muttering spells under her breath. Red light showed over his arm, back, head and a bit over his legs as well. "You've had a number of broken bones over the years, have you Harry?"

"Yes Ma'am."

"Hmm, generally underfed as well but I can correct for most of this. You're magic seems to have kept you from getting to bad. Amelia?" Healer Wright said in an aside to Madame Bones, "I'm going to have to get some potions from the hospital stocks to cover this. He needs some general nutritional potions to combat the malnutrition and we may need to vanish the bone in his left arm and regrow it make sure it's in the best shape. I also think that he needs to take a potion to strengthen his skull. There appear to be small cracks that have to be seamlessly grown together to make sure his skull is in the best shape. It would be best to have him sleep through this over a two day period."

"Alright, if that is best," Amelia agreed. "Can you document this for me so it can be added to his file?"

Pulling a couple of potions out and setting them on the desk she replied, "Sure thing, is this a possible abuse case?"

"Yes," Amelia said. "From what he indicated with his testimony, his relatives withheld food as punishment as well as let their own son beat on him without reprisal."

"Damn, I hope you throw the book at them." Healer Wright suddenly stood up and said, "Who authorized him staying with these relatives in the first place?"

"It appears to have been Dumbledore," Amelia softly said. "We are still investigating, so please keep this confidential until we know for sure."

"Understood Director Bones," the Healer said officially. With a flick of her wand at a stack of parchment, her diagnosis filled the pages as well as her recommended treatment. "There you go Harry, as soon as we get you treated, you'll be as good as new."

"Wow," Harry said. "That didn't hurt at all, no needles!"

Both women smiled at this as the Healer replied, "That's right Harry, no needles. Just drink these two potions and I'll see you later this evening with what you need to be perfectly healthy. Oh, let me check those eyes too while I'm at it."

Waving her wand over his eyes, she clucked her tongue before saying, "Well, I need to get you some new glasses as well, this prescription is very outdated."

"Um, I never had them checked before. The teacher at school told the Dursley's that I needed glasses and Aunt Petunia made me pick some out of a bin at the local church," Harry said.

That statement caused both women to huff in annoyance with his relative's idea of care. "Well, I can bring some new ones over this evening. What kind of frames would you like?"

"Frames?" Harry asked. "Um, whatever you think will be best is okay."

Healer Wright looked over at Amelia and said, "How about I bring over some silver framed ones?"

"That will be fine; we'll see you at 7 or 8 this evening?"

"Yes, that should work just fine. That will give me time to get the glasses made as well as collect all we need to help Harry out."

"Good then, see you this evening," Amelia said.

"Good bye Harry, it was nice meeting you," the Healer said as she walked out.

"Bye!" Harry said and waved.

"Alright Harry, let me finish some parchmentwork and we'll head home. Do you want to read a magazine or something while I do that?" Amelia asked.

"Sure, whatever you have is fine," Harry replied.

Amelia sighed knowing that Harry was trying not to be a bother and also knowing it was a learned behavior. She pulled out a magazine detailing new Law Enforcement techniques from the America's that she desperately wanted instated in Britain but knew the Minister and his cronies would reject to keep themselves out of the line of fire. "Here you go Harry; I should be done in about an hour. I hope you like this."

"Thanks," Harry said as he started flipping through the pages.

-oOo-

Amelia grunted in frustration as she signed the last parchment which again asked the Wizengamot to increase funding for basic material needed by her department. It was an ongoing fight between the idiot Minister and the equally idiotic Wizengamot for proper funding. Both sides seemed to want to keep the DMLE at the lowest possible funding level to keep basic services running but not to help in other areas such as investigations or dark wizard catching. All the department needed was to catch one of the Minister's cronies or a member of the Wizengamot with irrefutable evidence of wrongdoing and she'd be able to crack the system in place. Ah well, another day, another galleon as the saying went.

She looked over at Harry, who hadn't made a peep so far, and saw him avidly reading the magazine she'd given him. "Harry, I'm done now. Do you want to bring that along?"

Harry's little black-haired head popped up at the interruption, "Yes Ma'am, it's very interesting. Are you using these things to catch criminals these days?"

"I wish Harry, I can't seem to get funding for everything I want but someday I will get what we need to catch them."

"Can't people donate to the department to catch bad guys?" Harry asked solemnly. "I mean, if they want them caught and the government doesn't give you enough, they could pay the rest to make sure the criminals don't get them."

Amelia laughed at the naïve wisdom of the boy, "Well, it would certainly help but no one is inclined to do so. Probably because many of the rich members of our society are afraid if they did, we'd catch them doing something they aren't supposed to be doing."

"But that's wrong," Harry stated with no uncertainties. "I wish I was rich enough to help out."

That small comment caught Amelia's attention as she thought about how rich Harry Potter might actually be. She'd have to talk to Grabfoot about doing an audit of the Potter accounts to see if Dumbledore or anyone else had dipped into them while Harry didn't know about them. Another avenue of attack on the perpetrators had just appeared.

"Well Harry, enough of that for now, let's get you a few changes of clothes before going home. I hope my House Elf Trippy can make something you'll like before we see Healer Wright again."

Harry cocked his head to the side and with a puzzled look asked, "Trippy? House Elf?"

"Oh, a House Elf is a domestic servant used by many families in the wizarding world. They bond magically to a House, a certain family, and serve and help that House their entire lives. The magic of the Family keeps them strong, not too sure how that works actually. Maybe we can ask Trippy sometime in the future. Anyway, they help clean our houses and cook our food. They also provide companionship for children at young ages."

"Wow, but they're treated nicely. Right?" Harry asked with slight hitch in his voice.

"Well, good families do treat them as part of the family but I've heard rumors that some families aren't as nice. Unfortunately, if they aren't caught in the act there isn't much that can be done. In fact, I'm not sure that it is even against the law to abuse your House Elves. I'll have to look that up tomorrow. Thank you Harry," Amelia said as she thought of some of the ways families like the Malfoys and the Notts probably treated their servants.

"What for?" Harry asked.

Amelia shook her head with a fond smile, "For caring enough for domestic help that you actually reminded me to think about their well being as well." With that she held out her hand and grabbed his while leading him to the Floo and said, "Diagon Alley."


	5. Chapter 5

After a quick shopping trip to keep Harry clothed for a couple of days, they Flooed into the Bones home in Thetford to the northeast of London. They had obtained about a week's worth of new clothing for the boy who had marveled at the difference to the rags the Dursley's had forced him to wear.

"Welcome to Bones Manor. This is the traditional seat of the Bones family in England. After my brother, Edgar's, death in 1980, Susan inherited it and I moved in to take care of her and her inheritance until she comes of age," Amelia explained.

"Oh, does that mean that I have a manor somewhere too?" Harry asked.

"You know," Amelia mused, "you probably do have one. Something we can ask Grabfoot about. I know your family was primarily Welsh so it's probably somewhere in Wales."

"Oh," Harry said in wonder.

A loud stomping on the stairs interrupted the conversation as a little strawberry-blonde haired girl came down the stairs and entered the room in a whirl before stopping at the site of Amelia and Harry.

"Hello Auntie," she blurted out. "Who's this?"

"Good evening Susan," Amelia replied. "This is Harry Potter who I…"

"Harry Potter?" Susan cried out. Harry blushed at this while looking down at his new trainers.

"Yes Susan, I've invited Harry to stay with us for awhile. I'll explain later but for the next month or so he'll be staying with us. Aren't you going to welcome him?" Amelia asked with a smirk.

Susan blushed and looked at Harry, who was still studying his trainers, and blurted out, "Hi Harry, welcome to our home."

"Um, hi," Harry mumbled.

Susan grabbed his arm and said, "So come look at the back yard, Trippy will take your stuff upstairs. Come on!" The girl bundled him outside while Amelia sighed and set her case down on a table and called Trippy to her.

"Trippy, we'll be caring for Harry Potter for the next month or so at the least. See that he's put into the room across from Susan's and answer any questions he may have."

"Yes Mistress Amelia. Want do you want to be having for dinner tonight?" the House Elf asked.

"Something simple but filling will be fine. Healer Wright will be by this evening and will be bringing a potion regimen for Harry to take. Be sure he does, alright Trippy?"

"Trippy being doing that Mistress Amelia. Dinner will be ready in about half an hour."

"Thank you Trippy. I need to make a few Floo calls before then, if Susan or Harry come looking for me before then, I'll be in the den."

-0O0-

Later, after Healer Wright arrived by Floo, they all sat down to dinner and enjoyed the meal that Trippy made greatly. Amelia and the Healer continued to converse on Harry's case softly while the boy in question was engaged in his questioning Susan Bones about the Wizarding World while she asked him about the Muggle world.

As the Healer mentioned keeping something about wanting to scan Harry this evening again before doing him, Amelia heard a name that brought her up short.

"One moment Harry, Susan," she interrupted, 'what was that name again?"

Harry glanced up in alarm and muttered, "Um, Arabella Figg. She was my minder whenever the Dursley's couldn't be bothered to take me on vacations and such."

"Arabella Figg?" Healer Wright exclaimed. "I thought she had moved out to Kent to live with her sister raising Kneazles after her husband was killed."

Amelia thought to herself for a second before replying, "Yes, she did. At least that's what the Ministry last knew of her. But for her to be living in Surrey and to have knowledge of and actually to have looked after Harry, I think she was probably planted there by someone. I'll have an Auror go by and talk to her, if she knew of the abuse both she and whoever placed her there will be partially responsible for not reporting it." She shook her head to clear it out before asking, "Harry, how long has she lived there?"

"As long as I can remember," Harry replied. "She's almost always been available to watch over me and sometimes Dudley. Mostly she made me look at all the pictures of her cats. It was boring!"

They all laughed at that but Healer Wright and Amelia shared a look as they knew that cats and Kneazles were practically the same creature. She probably had a few to watch over the neighborhood. Amelia really needed to get more information on this case quick before anyone found out about it.

-o0o-

After dinner Harry was led upstairs to the room he would be using and Susan was warned not to enter for the next couple of days as Harry was being treated for some health issues. He was settled on the bed and Healer Wright placed the potions and tinctures she had brought on the table next to it.

"Alright Harry, I'm going to do another scan of you to make sure this procedure is correct and maybe another to check for anything I might have missed earlier. Is that okay?"

Harry nodded his head quickly, "Yes Ma'am."

Drawing her wand slowly to reassure the boy, the Healer waved it over his body slowly to ensure she caught any physical problems he might have. "Hmm, definite signs of malnutrition, the potions should correct everything. Might have to remove a femur as well, that leg seems to have been damaged some. Harry, when and how did you hurt your leg?"

"Oh, that was when Aunt Marge's dog Ripper tore into it last year. I thought it was broken but the Dursley's didn't so I had to limp around for a couple of months before it was better," Harry answered.

"Merde," Amelia growled under her breath.

"I agree," the Healer murmured. "Okay, that's done, let's do a spell check just in case. I thought of this after returning to St. Mungos earlier this evening. If the healers had placed any blocks as an infant, they need to come off soon. We can't trust it to Pomfrey after he goes to Hogwarts."

"I never thought of that," Amelia said in astonishment. "In fact, Susan had a block placed when she was one to control her accidental magic and it was only removed a year ago."

"Yes, we don't often think of it. In fact, after all the orphans left from the war, it should probably be smart to institute a standard exam to check for it. Pomfrey can come in sometime during the summer and learn the spells easily enough."

"True," Amelia noted. "I'll tell Augusta about it and…oh my, Augusta Longbottom. Do you think that may be why little Neville never showed any magical ability until he was eight?"

Healer Wright looked startled a moment before turning back to Harry, "Very probably. Have her bring him in the next few days so we can check him out. It might be prudent to issue a proclamation to have all orphans brought in, I can discuss it with Healer Albright tomorrow. Hmm," she hummed as she contemplated the scan. "I'm afraid it was a good idea we decided to check, it seems there are some blocks on his magic. One placed, hmm, looks like right after his birth. Probably right there in St. Mungos by the resident Healer. He must have had a particularly strong accidental magic incident right after or during birth. Hmm, another seems to have been placed at about 15 months to…that bastard!" she exclaimed.

"What?" Amelia asked in consternation.

"It appears that after his encounter with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named someone, probably Dumbledore, sealed his scar. The Dark Magic there is very concentrated and I'll have to see what I can do to clear it out. I may have to talk to the ritual cleansers at Gringotts to help out. That bastard ensured that the boy would always have some kind of connection to Him!"

"Wait," Amelia mused. "Are you saying that the connection is open right now? That Voldemort may not actually be dead but living in some fashion and feeding off Harry's magic right now?"

"That's exactly what I'm telling you Amelia," Healer Wright explained. "We need to find a way to close this connection soon, some Death Eater may find a way to use it to bring Him back."

"Great Merlin!" Amelia exclaimed before ordering, "Do what you can for now, I need make some arrangements." She turned and ran down to the Floo to begin spewing orders at her subordinates that might help save Magical Britain.


	6. Chapter 6

After barking orders to her Aurors for a good half hour, Amelia made her way back to Harry's room in time to see him take his potions and go to sleep.

"He should sleep for about 38 hours and then we begin his nutritional potion regimen to get him healthy," Healer Wright said as she packed up her bag. "Make sure he isn't disturbed before then and call me if anything happens. I'll talk to the Gringotts ritual specialist about his scar and see what we can do."

Amelia was weary now but glad to see something done on the boy's behalf. "I'll make sure to have Trippy watch over him. I think I can keep Susan from waking him by having her help Trippy."

"Good enough. Good night Director," she said.

-0o0-

The next morning Amelia Bones performed her morning ablutions and ate a quick breakfast prepared by Trippy. After checking on Harry to ensure he was resting comfortably on his potions regimen, she ordered Trippy to take care of Susan and Flooed to work. Entering her office she noted a request from Gringotts for a noon time appointment. Entering it into her calendar and making sure her secretary had the updated information, she called for various Auror teams to report to her office on the activities she had assigned the day before.

"Alright, let's get started," she said as they had all entered and sat down. "Shacklebolt, what did you find out once you questioned those teachers whose names I gave you?"

"They were definitely Obliviated Ma'am. But we were unable to recover any memories from them. However, I was able to get their statements under Veritaserum," he replied as he laid a few parchments in front of her.

"Ah, good," she said as she glanced at them before adding them to a folder. "Hammer, what about your questioning of Arabella Figg?"

Handing over more parchment she said, "You were right on Ma'am, she was placed in her new home to watch over Harry Potter by Dumbledore. She repeatedly reported to him that the boy was probably mistreated with his Muggle relatives but the old man just brushed her complaints off as boys roughhousing."

"Hmm, so while she tried to make him aware, she didn't report it to us?"

"No Ma'am," Auror Hammer replied. "She was specifically ordered not to talk to anyone at the Ministry by Dumbledore."

Everyone in the room huffed a bit at that information while Amelia smiled, knowing that it was one more nail in Dumbledore's coffin.

"I see," she said. "Okay, Radford, what did you learn from the Dursley's?"

"Ma'am, they are every bit as nasty as you said. Under Veritaserum they admitted to abusing Potter ever since he was left on their doorstep sometime during the evening of November 1st or 2nd of 1981. They were also able to produce a note from Albus Dumbledore that related that the boy left with them was their nephew and that his parents were killed by You-Know-Who. It also asked them to keep him until it was time to return him to the wizarding world."

"That's all?" Amelia asked.

"Yes Ma'am, although they seemed to think that they could somehow beat the magic out of him before Dumbledore sent for him. They really are despicable people, I have no idea what the old man was thinking leaving Harry Potter there. Once this gets out to the Prophet, there will be a real gale over this," Radford mused.

"I think you're right about that. Alright, have we at least turned over the evidence about their wrongdoing to the Muggle authorities?"

A tall elegant witch in the back stood and said, "We took all the depositions to Muggle Child Services and intimated that we were investigating something else when this came to our attention. Someone in the office called up the information on Harry Potter in their files and found that someone, no idea who, had started investigations into the Dursley's behavior before and then got sidetracked with something else. Strangely, all files of evidence had disappeared but the person they had look this information up had found, let's see," she looked at the notebook open before her, "electronic copies, whatever they are."

"Hmm," Amelia mused that she really needed some recent muggleborns in the DMLE to keep up on Muggle developments in technology. Dumbledore and anyone helping him had overlooked some kind of new style of records. "Alright, pass copies of everything on to Child Protective Services, attention Patrice Welling. I need Radford and his team to go over the incident at Godric's Hollow, all the evidence, any witness statements, crime scene investigation, etc thoroughly to see what comes up. Hammer, perhaps you can go up to Hogwarts and interview Rubeus Hagrid since we were told he was the first to the scene that night." Amelia thought for a second about what else she had been told by Harry and Mr. Quinn. "Kingsley, I want you to organize some teams, maybe using some Auror cadets, to help you weed through some old case files from that time to make sure Ministry regulations were followed. It was pointed out to me that Sirius Black may not have been given a trial and I can't for the life of me recall if I ever saw his questioning records as well. Time to find out just what Barty Crouch did back then."

The Aurors immediately headed out to follow up on her instructions. She sighed and took out a list she was compiling and decided her next item to cover was Minerva McGonagall. Hopefully she wasn't implicated in Dumbledore's shenanigans.

Director Bones went over to her office floo and threw in some powder before calling out, "Transfiguration Office, Hogwarts."

A moment later Professor McGonagall's head appeared in the fire who responded, "Director Bones, what can I do for you today?"

"Good morning Minerva," Amelia replied. "I wanted to ask you some questions concerning a youth and your name came up in my investigation. If you have the time, can you come through to my office?"

McGonagall looked back into her office for a moment before turning back and stating, "I think I can spare you at least a couple of hours right now before I'm needed in a staff meeting."

"Thank you Minerva, I'll release the floo and you can step through whenever you're ready."

"I should be there in a moment then," McGonagall said as she stepped back from the fire. The fire returned to it's normal orange-red color before flaring green again and revealing the Transfiguration Professor.

"Thank you for coming so promptly Minerva. I need to ask you a few questions as well as find out some things that we have uncovered over the past day.

-0o0-

McGonagall was ready to spit Dumbledore on a lance after learning that young Harry Potter was being abused by the Dursley's. That the man had disregarded the Potter's will was bad enough but to purposely place a child in such a situation was vile in her opinion. Plus the fact that she was named as one of the possible guardians really made her mad as well as making her feel even more guilty for letting him leave poor Harry on the Dursley's doorstep. She knew that she should have taken the child away from them and raised him herself but let Dumbledore talk her out of it and let him get away with leaving Harry to be abused.

Amelia watched the emotions crossing her old friends face and knew that she hadn't wanted to do Dumbledore's bidding that day. Still, she had and would have to live with that knowledge for some time.

"Minerva, I didn't tell you this to make you feel guilty. This is about making Dumbledore pay for his transgressions. From what I am learning, thus far, we know he disregarded the Potter's will. We think he may have had a hand in preventing Sirius Black from getting a fair trial and ending up in Azkaban. That he also ignored the warnings his own agent in place in Little Whinging told him of Harry's abuse and probably was involved in Obliviating Muggle officials to keep it covered up. I still have a meeting scheduled with Gringotts to meet with their investigators about Dumbledore's interference with the Potter account and his underhanded moves to control the lad. Also, I believe they were going to send some ward specialists to make an analysis of the Dursley residence to find out just how protected Harry was there."

"Merciful Merlin," gasped McGonagall. "I never realized what was going on right behind my back." Tears started slowly leaking from her eyes. "He really pulled the wool over our eyes. It's hard to believe that the person we revere as the defeater of Grindlewald could possibly have fallen that far."

"I know," Amelia reassured her. "I knew that he had a habit of manipulating people into doing things for the supposed 'greater good' but never thought he would go to such lengths to manipulate and abuse an innocent."

McGonagall sighed and wiped her face saying, "Well, I will help in any way that I can. By the way, I wonder just how this might explain his hiring of Severus Snape and keeping him on staff at the school."

"What do you mean?" Amelia asked.

"Well, the man is a superb Potions Master but he has the personality of a viper. He's the schools' Potions instructor and the Head of Slytherin but he is blatantly unfair to the other houses and complaints about his methods is always answered by Albus saying he'd have a talk with him. Which hasn't done anything to change his ways yet."

"Hmm, I may need to send some Aurors to investigate complaints into his teaching methods, just to keep Dumbledore busy that is."

"I will be expecting them then."


	7. Chapter 7

_It's been awhile but here's the latest. Hopefully the next few parts will be much bigger._

-o0o-

Amelia contemplated the information given her by Minerva McGonagall about Severus Snape and wondered where he fit into Dumbledore's schemes. Aloud she said, "I do wonder just why Dumbledore vouched for the man at the Death Eater trials back in the 80's and then hired him at Hogwarts."

McGonagall's lips tightened as she replied, "I have no idea why but when asked he merely replied that he trusts Severus."

"Really? Trusts him to do what exactly?"

"That's never been answered to anyone's satisfaction," McGonagall said tartly.

"Well, we need to make sure he doesn't get a hint of this investigation before it breaks publically so you will need some reason to have been here today. Hmm, oh I know, I recently heard that Elmer Tanner was talking about retiring from the Board of Governors again and you popped in to try to talk me into taking the vacant seat with Susan coming to school in two years."

"Yes, that would make sense. I really wish you would, you know."

"I'm much too busy with the job here and really don't want to get involved in the petty politics that would entail. However, you might want to put some pressure on Augusta Longbottom to think about taking the seat to offset the influence Malfoy has," Amelia huffed.

"Malfoy!" McGonagall spat. "That man should be in Azkaban for all he has done. I simply cannot understand why the Wizengamot ever let him off with that ridicules excuse of having been under the Imperious Curse. That decision certainly sank any chance of Bagnold to retain the position of Minister after that. Plus the heavy-handed way he's been acting around Fudge definitely makes one believe that he uses those co-called donations to get whatever policy he wants put in place."

"Believe me; I know exactly what you mean. It will be interesting to see just what my Aurors find while combing through the old case files in the archive. I have them reviewing all the old Death Eater trials to see if any Ministry rules and regulations were circumvented. If so, those cases will be reopened and retried publically. I can just get away with that under current regulations but must be careful that the old money interests are looked at first before those rules are changed," Amelia said in exasperation.

McGonagall reached out and patted the back of Amelia's hand saying, "I understand what you're saying. I seem to have some of those problems at Hogwarts as well when dealing with the old money families as well as Albus. But if you can get them before the news breaks, then you might actually get something worthwhile done and get the Ministry corruption under control."

"One of my most fervent desires comes true," Amelia sighed. "Interestingly enough, while I was talking with young Harry yesterday he pointed out the fallacy about not accepting donations for my department to help further Law Enforcement causes. I have kept it away simply to stop the influence peddling that it usually brings with it but the boy made a point that if it came without the usual riders, a donation could help to bring about some of the changes I want."

"Wouldn't that be nice to see," McGonagall mused. "Anyway, I need to get back to Hogwarts and attend the staff meeting. If he asks, I'll inform Albus that we talked about the possible Board opening and I again requested your possibly taking it up and that you again refused. I'll also try to contact Augusta about possibly taking the position if it opens up."

"Hmm, mention the fact that Neville will be attending and you want her there to control Snape. That might make her more agreeable. Oh, I spoke with Healer Wright last night and she mentioned that many orphans might have blocks on their magic from before the war and we simply didn't know about them. She was going to speak with Healer Albright about it and ask about a scanning program at St. Mungos for them. We both instantly thought of Neville's case when we started talking about it. She might be interested in that as well."

"Great Merlin," McGonagall exclaimed. "Could it be that simple? Could that be what caused poor Neville to appear to be so deficient in magic before?"

"You tell me," Amelia replied.

"You make a good case for it," McGonagall said. "I'll talk to her this afternoon. Goodbye Amelia."

"Goodbye Minerva, thank you for coming."

-o0o-

After watching McGonagall Floo out of her office, Amelia began making some order out of the assorted parchmentwork that this case was generating. She made a duplicate file and stored it in her safe before stuffing the other copy into a briefcase to take to Gringotts. She had a feeling that whatever the Goblins had found would be what was needed to break Dumbledore's hold on the Ministry once and for all. Especially once it was released to the press for the Witches and Wizards of Great Britain to see in the light of day.

She checked on the progress of her Aurors and then went down to the legal library to double check just what laws Dumbledore had been circumventing and listing them out.

She was appalled that some of the laws he was breaking might land him in Azkaban prison if the Wizengamot so felt like it.

-o0o-

Arriving at Gringotts at noon, Amelia soon found herself seated before Grabfoot again as Griphook stacked a bundle of parchment on the desk.

"Hello Grabfoot, I have some disturbing news for you and can probably guess that you have much the same for me. Shall we begin disheartening ourselves of the fact that Dumbledore had any worthwhile intentions in the matter of Harry Potter?"

Grabfoot smirked at her comment and said, "I believe that we are both having the same ideas about the illustrious Headmaster. I sent a team of our best curse breakers out to analyze the wards protecting Privet Drive. Their best estimate is that Dumbledore tried to lay some type of blood ward about the property in early November of 1981 and they failed because the Dursley's failed to adhere to the emotions needed to power them, specifically love. Their apparent hatred of wizards in general and Mr. Potter in particular means that the wards set by Dumbledore failed within a fortnight."

Amelia made a gesture with her hand as Grabfoot continued, "Oh, make no mistake, it was an interesting try and might have worked if the Dursley's did love the boy but it did not. The wards will register as being there but will not provide one whit of protection."

"Figures," Amelia noted. "We found that one of the neighbors is a squib by the name of Arabella Figg and that she had been placed there to keep watch over the boy. Unfortunately, all her efforts at warning Dumbledore of the faulty nature of his wards and the actions of the Dursley's against Harry fell on deaf ears. He merely dismissed her reports, never checking their validity and kept her from informing the Ministry of what was going on."

"Hmm," Grabfoot muttered as he noted this on a parchment. "We did not know of her but this is disturbing news. We were able to enter the residence for a short time and found that Mr. Potter was telling the truth about his dwelling there. There is no record of his presence besides the magical residue in the cupboard under the stairs. We passed this information to the Aurors who questioned the Dursley's and we plan to pass the financial information we've uncovered to you as well as Inland Revenue with the Muggles."

"We also found a mail ward had been erected that kept all but Hogwarts letters away from the residence. All statements from this bank, any correspondence from the Ministry and any fan mail he might have received over the years were redirected to Hogwarts."

"That bastard," Amelia commented, "that's a felony in itself to willfully misdirect someone's mail if you're not the Guardian."

"Oh yes, that is also a violation of the Treaty of 1458 to misdirect any mail from the Goblin Nation. His ward to prevent Mr. Potter from getting his bank statements may mean that unless he is punished by the Ministry, the Goblin Nation would have no choice but to rebel because the Ministry would be helping a Treaty Breaker."

"Oh my," Amelia exclaimed. "Just what have you found concerning Mr. Potter's accounts and Estate within Gringotts?"

"Firstly, we've found that Mr. Potter's Magical Guardian was listed as Albus Dumbledore."

"What?" Amelia squawked. "His records at the Ministry showed that he lived with his Magical Guardian, one Sirius Black!"

"Ah," Grabfoot scribbled quickly. "That apparently is another of his illegal actions in this matter. He appointed himself Magical Guardian of the Potter Estate under his authority as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. Apparently, he never notified the body of his actions. This definitely makes him a Treaty Breaker. We will have to notify Mockridge and the Liaison Office to pursue matters officially."

"Secondly, we have found he authorized the disbursement of funds from the account to pay the Dursley's about 2000 pounds a month for Mr. Potter's care. This, as I said, will be reported to Inland Revenue. We also found a monthly disbursement to Severus Snape. No reason was listed but he has been paid 1000 Galleons a month since the death of the Potters. We've put a stop to that already and are prepared to put a hold on his account to recover all moneys paid out over the years. Thirdly, we've also found a monthly disbursement to the Phoenix Fund. It is apparently a slush fund created and controlled by Albus Dumbledore."

"Is there anything else?" Amelia asked weakly.

"We looked over the account closely and it appears that all the disbursements that were called for in the Potter's Will were never made."

"My god, Dumbledore will be lucky not to receive the Kiss for everything he's done," Amelia noted in dismay as she accepted copies of the Gringotts investigation reports to put in her case.

"Indeed Madam," Grabfoot replied. "We will hold all correspondence for release when we receive your permission."

"Correspondence?" Amelia asked.

"Yes, notifications of his removal from the Potter accounts as well as warrants for his arrest. Or will they be issued through your office?"

"Hmm, it might be better if you issue the warrants as the Wizengamot may try to block such actions by my office. However, simply note on the forms that they are issued in both our offices names to allow us to prosecute as well."

"Gladly Madam," Grabfoot stated. "It is indeed a pleasure working with an honest individual in the Ministry for once."

Shaking the Goblin's hand, Amelia rose while answering, "While it wasn't a pleasure to find out all this, it was pleasant working with you. May your gold always flow."

Grabfoot and Griphook both bowed to Madam Bones as she exited the office to return to the Ministry.

-o0o-


End file.
